Mammoth skeleton unearthed in Serbia

[June 04, 2009]  BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) -- Archaeologists say a skeleton of a mammoth believed to be about 1 million years old has been unearthed in eastern Serbia.

Miomir Korac from the Archaeology Institute says the skeleton was discovered at an open-pit coal mine near Kostolac power plant. Korac says the skeleton is very well preserved. He says the mammoth was more than 4 meters (13 feet) high, 5 meters (16 feet) long and weighed more than 10 tons. Korac added Thursday that nearly the entire skeleton has been unearthed since the discovery two days ago. He says the mammoth was a so-called southern mammoth or mammuthus meridionalis, originating from northern Africa. Another mammoth skeleton, from a much later period, was discovered at a factory in Serbia in 1996 and was named Kika. ___ On the Net: http://www.kika-mamut.com/ [Associated Press] Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.